This article contains discussion of child sexual abuse which some readers may wish to avoid.
Emmerdale has confirmed a traumatic ordeal from the childhood of Ruby Fox-Miligan, revealing that she was sexually abused by father Anthony (Nicholas Day) at a young age.
The character, played by Beth Cordingly, has been central to the show for a year now, with episodes regularly focusing on turbulent times.
Since the arrival of her long-lost daughter Steph (Georgia Jay) and her estranged father Anthony, she has closed herself off and fans have been left wondering what has been going on in her mind to provoke such changes in the usually extraverted Ruby.
Now, an episode with flashbacks offer a glimpse into her past, focusing on her 16th birthday party.
Emmerdale has assured that no scenes depicted will be graphic in nature.
Thursday’s (December 12) edition of the ITV soap saw a young Ruby enjoying her 16th birthday, taking a friend named Rob upstairs to her room as Anthony watched on.
Despite Anthony’s claims that she slept with Rob at the party, the flashbacks confirmed that Rob and Ruby were just friends, with Rob interested in another boy named Darren.
After the party, Anthony entered Ruby’s bedroom while her mother was out and locked the door.
What happened to Ruby as a child is unknown to her husband, Caleb, played by William Ash, as she has buried the trauma as a coping mechanism.
However, her life has begun to spiral out of control as those painful memories have resurfaced and flooded her thoughts and they also go some way to explain why she pushed Steph away as a child.
Emmerdale producer, Laura Shaw, said: ‘Ruby has always been troubled and volatile in nature and finally our audience will be able to learn more about the past that has haunted her and made Ruby the woman she is today.’
The storyline is likely to trigger an emotional and hard-hitting journey on the show, with Ruby attempting to navigate the intrusion of her traumatic ordeal into her current life.
Last month, Metro introduced This Is Not Right, our year-long campaign around violence against women.
Metro’s Editor Deborah Arthurs said: ‘The epidemic of violence against women was called a national emergency earlier this year by Home Secretary Yvette Cooper.
‘That is why Metro is today launching This Is Not Right, a 12-month campaign addressing the relentless epidemic of violence against women, that aims to both engage and empower our readers.
‘Because despite the troubling rise in violence against women, there is a serious and harmful lack of awareness of its scale that is inhibiting progress towards reversing the trend.’
Metro aims to produce content that both shines a light into all kinds of abuse, as well as empowering readers and exploring how the issues are dealt with in the wider media.
Soaps continue to be at the forefront of highlighting issues around violence against women. Alongside Cleo McQueen’s (Nadine Mulkerrin) ordeal at the hands of Abe (Tyler Conti) and Leela’s (Kirsty-Leigh Porter) sexual assault in Hollyoaks, Emmerdale has been exploring mental, physical and technology abuse with Tom King (James Chase) subjecting Belle Dingle (Eden Taylor-Draper) to a relentless campaign of control and cruelty.
And EastEnders was hailed earlier this year for scenes surrounding Yolande Trueman (Angela Wynter) opening up about being sexually assaulted by local pastor, Gideon Clayton (Howard Saddler).
Hollyoaks has also won widespread acclaim for tackling a sibling sexual abuse storyline, dating back to the childhood of Frankie (Isabelle Smith) and her abuser JJ (Ryan Mulvey).
